Not knitting?

As usual, after a big thing is completed, I seem to hit a lull.  I knit a little on my Hitchiker, but that is it.  I would probably do socks but...my current sock bag seems to be lost.  There are others of course, but the influx of Christmas gifts bought early means piles.  In my very small room here, piles means some things are inaccessible.  So not a lot of knitting.


I did bring in all my spinning stuff from the car.  It needed a good going through and possibly a restocking of fibre.  I seem to be working through things in the most pleasing way.

 This is, more or less what I've accomplished in the last while.  It looks rather dull in terms of colour, doesn't it? The reality is a little different.

What appears blackish is, on closer inspection, a rather gorgeous burgundy.   A third of the Top Knot was this middle colour.  About a third has an even darker colour, and the last bit is a more bright burgundy.  Longer ago, I would have simply spun it.  Now, I pulled it apart and I hope for a bit of a gradient effect.  

 Rather than being the dull funky brownish thing at the top of the first picture, this skein is a lovely heathered greenish colour.  It looks considerably more green than in the photo, and I quite like it.  This is, IIRC the oldest fibre in my stash.  One more good spinning day and I will have two nice full bobbins ready for plying.

I'm not going to show you the bright stuff.  That was just a punch of colour to break things up. 

And this last.

 Just a good old fashioned Shetland in a soft natural brown.  My dreams of spinning have always been about spinning fine and knitting a complete shawl in all the colours I could find, of Shetland wool. I have another full bobbin of this waiting to be plied too.

It may take a day or so to get my knitting sorted.  Or, indeed dug out.  Until then I will look at these very pleasing pictures of some decently spun yarn made by me.  That may be more tooting my horn than I usually do, but I am pretty pleased with how spinning is coming along.

Yes several bobbins are not loaded smoothly.  I have a sliding hook on the flyer that needs to be tightened.  My little plyers, which I have been meaning to put in my spinning toolkit for weeks,  is, as of this morning, when I thought it went into my purse,  most likely buried under Christmas.  Sigh.  Anyway,for all the days I don't post, this is what I am up to.